In a tap water management system, clean water is supplied from a service reservoir to a consumer that is an end user through the water distribution pipe network. In this case, the tap water management system supplies clean water by increasing a water pressure (water distribution pressure) in a water distribution pipe by using a pump pressurization method in which water is pressurized by a pump or the like or a gravity pressurization method in which water is pressurized by using a height difference between the service reservoir located on a high place and a customer's premises. The tap water management system controls this water distribution pressure to maintain the water pressure at the customer's premises at a predetermined level.
As a first example of controlling the water distribution pressure, a control method in which the water distribution pressure is controlled according to a water distribution plan that is previously determined based on the supply and demand forecast or the like can be used. In patent literature 3, there is described a system in which a water distribution amount based on the water distribution plan is calculated by simulating the water distribution pipe network.
As a second example of controlling the water distribution pressure, a method in which an output of a water distribution control device located near the service reservoir is controlled by feedback control while monitoring the current water pressure in the water distribution pipe network or the water pressure at the customer's premises can be used. For example, in patent literature 2, there is described a technology for suppressing the control performance deterioration due to the secular change of the water distribution pipe network by using a model based on actual process data of an inflow amount, a discharge pressure, a water pressure at the customer's premises, and a demand. Further, in patent literature 1, there is described a water distribution pressure control device to which a modeling error is taken into consideration.
On the other hand, a metal such as a stainless steel, a carbon steel, or the like or a resin such as vinyl chloride or the like is used for the water distribution pipe of which the water distribution pipe network is composed. It is known that by secular change (aged deterioration), a water delivery performance is decreased or a failure such as water leakage, water distribution pipe burst, or the like occurs. In non-patent literature 1, it is described that this deterioration is caused by corrosion on the inner surface of the water distribution pipe, scale deposition, reduction of a pipe diameter or blockage of a pipe caused by slime attachment, a pipe wall thickness loss due to corrosion, or corrosion on the external surface of the pipe when the pipe is buried in the ground.
Further, a technology for diagnosing and analyzing a degree of deterioration of the water distribution pipe is known. For example, in patent literature 4, there is described a technology for diagnosing a state of deterioration of a pipeline network by comparing event data of a pipeline measured by a vibration sensor or a flow rate sensor with a graph showing the aged deterioration characteristic. Further, in patent literature 5, there is described a technology for determining an opening and closing state of an opening and closing device based on opening-closing information detected by an opening and closing sensor and analyzing a state of a pipe laying based on vibration information detected by the vibration sensor.
On the other hand, with the development of IT (Information Technology), a technology to instantly deal with a large amount of sensor information at a hub side is available at present. For example, in non-patent literature 2, there is described a technology for dealing with stream data such as sensor data in several seconds and comparing it with the stored data.